STAR WARS: ECHO OF THE EMPIRE
by DhuryamDhuryam
Summary: A MASSIVE OVERHAUL OF MY STAR WARS STORIES IS UNDERWAY. CHECK MY PROFILE FOR MORE INFO. 259 ABY: Less than a year after the events of AFTERMATH Allana Skywalker is arrested for the murder of Chief of State Herbert Brand. And Zedekiah Braega commences his plan to return the Empire to its former glory. For some strange reason ch 3 has less views then later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

STAR WARS: ECHO OF THE EMPIRE

by DhuryamDhuryam

Dramatis Personae

Allana Skywalker Hodon; Jedi Master (female human)

Armedius 'Krayt' Krey'tnarov; Jedi Knight (male Bothan)

Asyr Bwua'tu; Admiral (female Bothan)

Enzetti Lah; Jedi Knight (female Yuuzhan Vong)

Hemir Hodon; Jedi Knight (male Chiss)

Koda Palaui; Jedi Knight (male human)

Nelani Skywalker; Jedi Master (female human)

Tycho Skywalker; Jedi Master (male human)

Zedekiah Braega; Imperial Commander (male human)

Chapter 1

258 ABY: GF Cyber Defense

Armedius' fingers seemed to fly across the keyboard as he fought to protect valuable Galactic Federation files from... the Empire, most likely. He sat at a circular table with seven other slicers. In the background slicer droids and astromechs beeped and chattered, NightShade especially as she implemented the mutating infinite loop Krayt had created. That Imperial holoworm would go in circles until it and/or its creators realized what was happening.

"Next shift comin' in," announced a young Duros woman.

Krayt immediately got out of his chair and stretched. A turquoise skinned Twi'lek man approached him and tossed him a food pouch. "Vegginoodles in firemint sauce," he told the Bothan Jedi.

"Thanks," he replied, opening the package. He tipped it up to his mouth and practically drank the contents.

The Twi'lek shook his head in amusement as he took the recently vacated chair. "Can't imagine why you're still single."

Armedius frowned at him. And it suddenly hit him how much he missed Enzetti. She'd gone to Coruscant with the other Jedi to investigate a series of murders there. He'd been all set to go with them when the call came that he was needed at Cyber Defense.

249 ABY: Corellian System: Tralus

It would be a while before anyone at the spaceport noticed the inordinate amount of energy going to the long abandoned air duct, and by then Armedius would have gotten passage to another planet. The young Bothan hit the transfer button, and seven thousand thirty two point eight credits were transferred to the account he'd set up under the false name of Kristi Brackwood. The original owner of those credits, being a rich senator, would scarcely miss them. He suddenly felt a pair of presences approaching. He frowned. How the heck could they know?

The cover to the air duct suddenly fell off, even though he'd watched a droid weld the cover in place three days ago. Two humans stood outside. A tall man with long red hair, and a small brunette woman.

259 ABY: Borleias: Upsilon District

A few months after reporting the incident with that_ Lukrehulk_ to the GF government, Enzeek C'Tari had been offered a job as an intelligence analyst. As well as a very nice flat on the current capital world of the Galactic Federation. Of course he'd accepted.

But of late, despite the incredible pay and his new flat, Enzeek had begun to wonder if it had been such a good idea. A dozen analysts had been killed within the last month. A dozen analysts that he'd had clearance to hear about. There'd been a dramatic increase in Imperial and Hapan chatter shortly before these murders had started. He shook his head slightly as his new bright green _Suzubishi_ speeder sped up to merge with traffic. Why the increase in Hapan-. Suddenly the vehicle was engulfed in an enormous fireball. A few other speeders were caught in the explosion. The debris rained down upon speeders in lower lanes, destroying some of them, also. Within moments green and white police speeders were swarming about the area, as well as news speeders.

Borleias: Government District

Lieutenant Jate Redman could not believe it. Allana Skywalker. On her left ring finger was a silver band. Of course he had never actually been interested in marrying her. Though he greatly admired her and the other Jedi, he preferred not to keep company with them. Trouble seemed to follow them like a lost nexu cub. "What may I do for you, milady?" And of course he had to be a complete dork about meeting one of his heroes.

"I need to speak with Chief of State Brand. It's very important."

"Uh. He's quite busy right now. Perhaps I could relay a message?"

"It's highly classified."

"Well, in that case I'd prefer not to know," he said with an awkward laugh. "I shall escort you."

"The architecture of this building is beautiful," Allana commented as they walked toward their destination.

"It's amazing what one can do with stone. Stone is dirt, really. Put under incredible pressure. A bit like Herbert Brand," he said with that same awkward laugh. "Well, there you are." The man stepped toward a wooden door and a small laser passed over his retina. The door quietly slid open.

"Wooden doors are such a lovely touch," Allana said as she walked into the Chief of State's office.

Seated behind a large desk with stacks of flimsies, datapads, and data cards was a thin, pale skinned man with a receding hairline. After a few moments he looked up from his work. "Oh, sorry," he said. "I didn't see you there." Interruptions were the last thing one needed when one was in the middle of a heated fight with the Senate. "What can I do for you?"

She clenched her left fist. A cracking sound came from the man's neck. And as he slumped forward she used the Force to gently lower his head to the table.

* * *

Jate frowned. They were taking an awfully long time in there. He went to the door and knocked. No response. He let the scanner pass over his eye again. Jate went into a cold sweat when he saw Herbert Brand slumped forward upon his desk. Allana was nowhere to be seen. As he ran over to the Chief of State he noticed that one of the windows had a hole in it. He put two fingers on the side of Brand's neck. No pulse. The Chief of State was dead.

_Coruscanti Phoenix_: Orbiting Adumar

Admiral Asyr Bwua'tu currently had a fleet stationed at Adumar over concerns that the nearby Imperial fleet that had been at Dathomir for three days was preparing to take the world. Adumar was still far less advanced than many other planets. And thus was a reasonable target.

"Another of our intelligence analysts has been killed," Jed Haasef's hologram said. "It seems to have been some sort of speeder bomb. C'Tari did have a remote starter. It must have been activated when his vehicle hit a certain speed. All these operatives have been killed in different ways, suggesting that they might be targets of opportunity. And that will make it harder to prevent these... Hold on, urgent message." Asyr could tell by his face that something had just gone horribly wrong. "That was one of Chief of State Brand's aids," the man said with a heavy sigh. "He's… dead. The aid said Allana Skywalker was the last person to talk to Herbert Brand."

"That doesn't mean she murdered the Chief of State."

"But it at least highly suggests it," the Devaronian man said with an edge to his voice sharper than horns on his temples.

"Perhaps."

Borleias

The door slid open. Ten law enforcement officers and five Combat droids barged into Hemir and Allana's apartment. One of the officers looked at Allana. "We are placing you under arrest for treason and the murder of Chief of State Hebert Brand."

Both Hemir and Allana were in their nightclothes, having just gotten out of bed upon feeling a disturbance in the Force.

"What?" Allana said as she put her hands behind her head and got down on her knees. She and her husband would have likely have been able to fight them off. But that would make her, and perhaps Hemir appear guilty of wrongdoing. Another of the officers roughly attached a pair of stun cuffs to her wrists. In the middle of the chain was a cylindrical object. If Allana tried to use the Force the device would deliver a shock that would stop her heart.

"We'll get this sorted out, baby," Hemir said as the idiots led her away. She hadn't even had time to put on shoes.

* * *

It was three fourteen in the morning and the comm was chiming an urgent tone. Tycho nearly tore the covers off the bed as he leapt up and ran to the holocomm. A hologram of a distraught blue face hovered above the projector. "Hemir, what's wrong?"

"Allana was arrested. They think she killed the bloody Chief of State."


	2. Chapter 2

Borleias: Max Security Prison

Wearing a red prison jumpsuit, indicating that she was considered a dangerous inmate, Allana sat on the uncomfortably hard bed. She hadn't even been allowed to keep her ring. Outside her cell was an ysalamiri. These creatures created bubbles in which the Force could not be accessed. She had never felt so… hollow. So helpless.

Sitting in the chair across from her was a young Devaronian man. To the left of his chair was a briefcase. The outside was covered in a green, scaly material. And the handle was made of some sort of animal bone. How many different types of animals had been killed to make the hideous thing?

"You may call me Draff Haasef."

Haasef. Allana had an awful feeling about this. "Any relation to Jed Haasef?"

"Why yes. I am his son."

Allana did not let her dismay show. Surely, Jed had taught his son to hate the Jedi, also.

"I suggest that you plead guilty in exchange for getting the death penalty off the table. It is a long shot, but I just might be able to swing it?"

Both treason and the murder of the Chief of State would get her the kill tab. Even if one death sentence was repealed-and that was a Death Star sized if-it would be impossible to get rid of the other. This man was trying to get her killed.

Iota District Courthouse

Allana knew that the trial would be unfair. As the long dead Daala would have wanted. Guilty until proven innocent, not that any real attempts to prove her innocence would be made. It would be rigged to get her executed. Had she actually been guilty it would have been one thing. But to die for something she didn't do. It was all she could do to keep from sobbing continually.

Her babies could be raised be her parents, so they'd be alright. It was Hemir she was most worried about. He'd told her on multiple occasions that she had saved him from falling to the dark side. Would the love of his children, in-laws, and friends be enough to save him? Allana wasn't entirely convinced it would.

Hemir and his in-laws begrudgingly handed over their lightsabers before entering the courtroom. Of course Hemir still had the concealed, sensor shielded weaponry built into his prosthetic left arm. Not that it would be needed. Armedius and Koda were on standby, aboard the _Fireface_t and _Sarlagesus_ respectively, just in case this was some sort of trap.

Hemir felt very strange upon entering the room. Completely disconnected from the Force. "They must have ysalamiri in here," he commented.

Tycho nodded.

Allana walked into the courtroom wearing manacles. The ones for her wrist had a shock unit to prevent her from using the Force. She didn't look like she was doing very. Her eyes had bags under them and were bloodshot. The red jumpsuit disturbingly matched her hair. A pair of guards removed her bonds; with the ysalamiri present they wouldn't be needed. And she'd look more presentable to the camera.

Hemir started walking toward his wife. One of the guards stepped out in front of him. "Are you bloody telling me I can't even talk to my wife?"

"Sir, given the seriousness-"

"Save it," he stepped back, but what he really wanted to do was take someone's head off. He was glad his children weren't here to see this. They were at their grandparents' apartment with Enzetti.

All the benches were full, so the armed guards led Hemir and his in-laws to the back of the courtroom. They had to stand, because apparently three chairs were more than could be spared at the moment. Under most circumstances Hemir wouldn't have been bothered, but right now he was just angry about everything. The Jedi died defending these idiots, and what thanks did they get! _They hate us!_

The judge, a stern faced Gotal took his place. The man waited a few seconds as people finished getting situated. Of course, he could not start this spectacle before every one was nice and cozy. _Where's_ _the bloody popcorn?_ Hemir wondered.

"Where were you yesterday at between one forty seven and three oh nine yesterday morning?" asked the Duros prosecutor.

"I was in bed with my husband. We were both asleep."

"Yet both of you were awake when you were arrested."

"We felt someone approaching through the Force; everyone knows Jedi can do that." The initial questioning went on a while longer, with no ground being made, or lost.

The Gotal judge turned toward a young man seated at the witness stand to his left. "Calling forth our witness, Lieutenant Jate Redman."

The young man explained in great detail meeting Allana, letting her in to see the Chief of State, and then coming in after she'd been in his office a suspiciously long time. And finding the Chief of State dead.

"Perhaps you have a different explanation?" the prosecutor said.

Allana sighed. She knew they wouldn't buy it, but what else could she do except prolong things? "During the recent droid crisis clones were made of me that provided the droid ships with extra power. At least one of those clones may have survived."

"According to the medical reports the clones could not have survived due to the acute exhaustion they underwent. So I fail to see how a clone could have done this."

"It is also possible that someone could have been surgically altered to look like me," Allana said.

"Or perhaps it was you," the prosecutor retorted.

"Your Honor," Mr. Haasef said. "If she were guilty of such charges why would she go home, where the authorities were most likely to look for her? Someone who was guilty would have found transport to some backrocket world. And surely, were she guilty, she would have planned a much better explanation."

"Perhaps she is trying to create the illusion of innocence," said the prosecutor.

And as the questioning went on, Mr. Haasef's theories became increasingly absurd. Sleep walking under Imperial mind control. A Yuuzhan Vong in an ooglith masquer. Why in the heck would the Yuuzhan Vong want to assassinate the Chief of State? Or perhaps the Chief of State had been kidnapped and replaced by a dead clone. The desperate nature of those theories would only strengthen the belief of the jury that Allana was indeed guilty. And that her defense attorney was punting. Which he was.

"And how do you plead?" the judge asked after what seemed like hours of an absurd exchange of questions and answer between the Haasef and the equally hostile prosecutor.

"Not guilty, your Honor." Allana desperately this plea would force all parties involved to question her more thoroughly. And the longer this went on the more likely it was that some sort of evidence, which would prove her innocence would come forth.

Hemir and his in-laws retrieved their lightsabers after they left the courtroom. They silently walked down the hallway and out the door. "The whole bloody thing's rigged," Hemir said after they were a few meters from the building. He no longer felt the energy signatures of surveillance equipment.

Tycho nodded. He knew how it would end if they didn't do something, and soon. "I don't like our grandchildren being so close to this, even with Enzetti with them."

Hemir hadn't thought about that. "She could take them to Shedu Maad."

"And then she could come back here," Tycho said. "We may need her skills here."

Hemir knew his and Allana's children wouldn't like it, but they'd be fine."

Hemir and his in-laws returned to courthouse the next day. They'd barely caught a glimpse of Allana, as the guards had formed a wall between them. And again, the three Jedi were forced to stand in the back, where they could hardly see anything.

"Can you deny that the droids were an enemy of both the Galactic Federation and the Empire?" asked the prosecutor.

"No. I cannot."

"And can you deny that by helping one government you were also helping the other?"

"No. I cannot. But if you think I'd work for the same terrorists that murdered hundreds of Jedi-"

"Order!" the judge said with calm sternness.

Borleias Max Security Prison

_Two burning, golden suns glare balefully at her. No, not suns. Eyes. Full of anger and hatred._ Allana awoke with a whimper and reached out to her husband in the Force. Tried to anyway. Then she remembered that she was in a jail cell, far away from her husband, and in the Force nullifying bubble of an ysalamiri.

Base Camp

Hemir woke up in pilot's seat of the _Sarlagesus_; Koda was asleep in the copilot's seat. He looked at the chrono; he'd been asleep for less than three hours. Allana's favorite book _The Crook, the Wook, and Me_, a collection of memoirs written by Leia Organa Solo, rested on his chest. He'd started reading it the night before, while listening to Coalescence. It was Allana's favorite band, and had quickly become his. Hemir felt utterly incomplete without her; they were a part of each other. He should have woken up in the ship's bed with Allana in his arms. His in-laws were currently using it; they were still asleep.

The Chiss Jedi looked out the cockpit. His ship was in an abandoned warehouse. It would have been a gross understatement to say it was a tight fit. He quietly went out to the galley and made himself a cup of Sunset Tea. He put seven drops of brownish Banshee sauce into the tea and used the Force to mix it into the tea. Swirls of darkness swam like water serpents before dissipating. The spicy tea burned as it went down his throat. He suddenly felt Enzetti's presence and the familiar energy signature of the _Firefacet_ approaching their location.

Iota District Courthouse

Without the Force to draw upon, the sleep deprivation hit Hemir like a hail of splatballs. His in-laws looked similarly exhausted. Hemir tuned out most of the proceedings.

"You have been found guilty by the majority of the jurors. And therefore, the sentence is death," the judge said. Hemir's blood went cold as he heard the verdict.

Nelani was sobbing as the Jedi exited the courtroom. And Hemir had a brief fantasy about reaching out in the Force to break one of the guard's necks.

Base Camp

"This isn't good," Nelani mumbled as she and her husband grabbed a bite to eat aboard the _Sarlagesus_. Enzetti was currently aboard the _Firefacet_.

"They're workin' on it," Tycho said as he embraced her.

Hemir paced nervously as he, and the others waited for Krayt, who was muttering things to himself like he always did when slicing, and Koda to find where Allana was being held. The only thing he saw on the screen that made sense to him were the red lines, which indicated that the slice was bouncing off of multiple IP addresses. The Chiss Jedi felt utterly useless, not being able to slice worth a darn. He recalled when his adoptive parents died, how useless he'd felt then.

248 ABY: Ossus

Hemir stared through the plastiwall. Alvarez and Nomi Hodon lay on a medical bed. Their faces were pail and cadaverous. They'd insisted on being put in the same bed so that they could die in each other's arms. They had also synchronized their heart rates, so that they would die at the same time.

Tycho had been exposed to a small amount of the toxin, and was in quarantine in another ward. He'd begun coughing up blood. Nelani, wearing a hazmat suit, was in there with him.

Hemir was clutching a fuzzy, plush indigo jumping spider. On its back, in near fluorescent orange, were the words 'Bastion Ettercaps'. It was his mum's splatball team. And so it was his also. He squeezed the stuffed animal gently; he couldn't watch his parents dying anymore today. So he left and looked for Allana.

Hemir found Allana on a sofa. She had a keyboard on her lap; she was working on some report. She shut the device off when she saw Hemir. "They're going to die," he said sadly.

"I'm so sorry," she said softly. Hemir hopped up beside her, and she held him as he cried.

Hemir went to visit his parents the next day. After what felt like forever, the rise and fall of the heart monitor decayed into a long, drawn out ring. They were gone. All that Hemir really knew was that some man who hated Jedi had launched a chemical attack to kill as many of them as he could. He had attacked multiple academies at once. Hundreds of Jedi of been killed. Allana had told him that man's name was Braega. Braega was trying to complete Order 66. An attempt to exterminate the Jedi that had been started by the man who would later become Emperor Palpatine. Hemir didn't understand how someone could hate others so much. What had any of the Jedi ever done to him?

259 ABY

"It's in the Dodonna District," Krayt suddenly blurted as he jumped up. Hemir was jolted back to the present with that.

Everyone except Koda rushed down the boarding ramp of the _Sarlagesus_. Enzetti ran up a staircase that would take her to the next floor, where the _Firefacet_ sat, while the other Jedi went downward to the garage area. Were the base camp to be discovered it would be a simple matter for Koda and Enzetti to take their respective vessels somewhere else.


	3. Chapter 3

Dodonna District

A harsh slap on the face woke Allana from yet another nightmare. "Get up!" An angry voice shouted. A burly Chev guard hauled her to her feet. An even burlier Gamorrean stood beside the Chev man. Allana fought against the man, but accomplished nothing cut off from the Force as she was. The Chev then slapped her so hard it almost knocked her out. Allana allowed her knees to buckle as she was led the room where the kill tab would be forced down her throat. The Gamorrean simply picked her up.

There was tremendous boom as the left wall exploded inward. The shock wave knocked everyone down and left Allana's ears ringing. As she scrambled back to her feet she looked out through the hole. Hovering beyond was the blue-gray box of a GovXon delivery speeder. A side door opened and blaster muzzles poked out. Two blue ion beams hit and stunned the two guards while a hail of red laser beams slammed into the two Combat droids. One fell down with a smoking hole in its chest while the other slumped against the right wall, headless. Allana jumped out of the hole and into the speeder.

The speeder was zipping through the airlane at an illegal pace before the side door could even be closed. It whipped around a corner with two police speeders on its tail. The GovXon speeder dropped down a few lanes, prompting the law abiding drivers to swerve out of the way. The delivery speeder turned a few more corners, somehow putting more distance between itself and its pursuit. It turned a final corner seconds later. The pilots of the police speeders paid little attention to the silver _Porschette_ speeder, going the other way, as they caught up to the GovXon speeder.

The green and white speeders came to a halt as their pilots spotted a repurposed droid gunship. The gunship launched a missile at the GovXon speeder. The missile detonated inside the speeder, sending debris in all directions. An investigation team would soon be dispatched to examine the wreckage.

Hemir placed his right hand on the stun unit on Allana's wrist manacles. Blue energy flowed from his hand. The stun unit sparked and crackled and he used to the Force to break the manacles off of his wife. Hemir helped her sit up and kissed her. "Enzetti took Tsetti and Thorden to Shedu Maad," the Chiss Jedi told her. "They'll be staying with Tiberius."

Allana breathed a sigh of relief; her babies were safe with their great-grandfather. "Where are we going now?"

"Back to Base Camp," Armedius said.

"Old abandoned warehouse," Hemir clarified.

Tycho and Nelani sat in the_ Porschette_'s front seats. Intense feelings of relief and reassurance were pouring out them, but they remained silent as Nelani made sure no one was following them, and Tycho took a circuitous to Base Camp. They would take no chances.

_Coruscanti Phoenix_: Orbiting Adumar

Admiral Asyr Bwua'tu continued to restlessly tap her fingers on the table as the man walked into the interrogation room. She did not let the nervousness she felt show, but made a point of projecting her annoyance. Keeping an admiral waiting for almost two hours was not good form. "This had better be gosh dang important." If Zuul Zuzu felt something in the Force she'd have no one to bring it to. Asyr would hate for something horrible to happen because there'd been no one to listen to the Sullustan.

And the admiral still had reports to read.

The man sat down in the chair across the table from her. "Allana Skywalker was just broken out of prison."

"I know. I heard the news."

"Did you have any prior knowledge of this?"

"No," she said, hiding her surprise that someone would suspect she did. "And Braega said he did it. Why would he contact-"

"I don't think you believe he did it. I am sure you believe it was the Jedi."

"There is no conclusive proof as to who broke her out."

"Answer the question," the man said sternly.

"If the Jedi believed she was innocent of the charges then I don't think they'd let her die for something she didn't do."

"And you don't believe she did it. So that means you believe the Jedi broke her out. Now I'll ask you again-"

"No. I had no prior knowledge of the breakout. And the Jedi…" _Dang it, you gundark_. She'd walked right into it. Well, the whisperkit was out of the sack now. "They clearly did not want to involve me, and therefore did not tell me of their plans."

"Did it ever occur to you that they would do this?"

"No, I've been too busy to worry about that. Though, it is the only logical thing for them to have done."

"Well, if Skywalker didn't do it, then who in the Void did?"

She couldn't say it was a clone, or a surgically altered Force user. She'd likely have her fleet taken away from her and given to some bantha brain who didn't know what beyond the Ninth Gate he was doing. "How in the Void is this relevant to protecting Adumar from the Empire?"

"You listen here, we are going to stay in this room until-" The man's comm buzzed. "_What?_" he almost yelled. The man looked back at the admiral after listening to the comm a few seconds. "Gotta go interrogate an Imperial terror suspect. But when I get back-"

"Yeah, I know. Back into purgatory."

Bastion

Moff Julius Reige frowned at the screen. "We have a black budget?" he muttered. The names of the special projects were absurd. 'Goth Arrowhead'. 'Dagger Fang'. 'Death Punch'-that was a death metal band. He looked up at the young ensign that sat across from him. "Why was I not informed of this earlier?"

"I only discovered it," he looked at his chrono, "thirty seven minutes ago, sir."

"I want this investigated."

"Yes, sir." The young man stood up to go.

"And one more thing."

"Yes, sir?"

"You don't need to say 'sir' at the end of every sentence."

"Alright, sir."

The Moff shook his head as the younger man walked out the door.

* * *

"What do you want?" the Moff asked in annoyance of Zedekiah Braega as the Imperial fundamentalist walked into his office. Nutters like him were what was wrong with the Empire.

"Is that any way to greet a friend?"

Moff Reige ignored the comment. "Who is your friend?" he asked of the robed figure walking at Braega's side. The figure pulled the hood back. Reige stared in disbelief. "It's true then?"

"Of course not," Braega said, shaking his head. He gestured to young red haired woman beside him. "This is Lady Sidious." She frowned at the Moff, indicating that he would not work with them. Zedekiah Braega sighed. "Go ahead, milady."

The Moff suddenly found himself unable to breathe, as though some invisible hand were wrapped around his throat. There was a sudden crack, and the man slumped forward and was dead.

Belkadan

There was little attention being paid to Belkadan lately. So much was happening deeper in the galaxy that no one really cared about the humble world at the edge of the galaxy. Not too terribly far from Bastion the world was the perfect temporary headquarters for Braega's new empire.

Zedekiah looked through the viewport at the enormous black triangle. He turned to Moff Gatterweld. "We mustn't let the GF find it."

"What we need is some sort of distraction. A red herring, if you will."

Braega nodded. "I believe it's time to leak some valuable information."

"I trust you know what you are doing," the Moff said. "An emergency election is soon to be called. My operatives shall ensure that I win this election."

Borleias: Base Camp

Hemir and his apprentice Koda were engaged in a fierce lightsaber dual. They were using the dual phase lightsabers that had belonged to his father Thorden-the former Sith apprentice turned dark Jedi who Hemir had managed to save from the dark side. Hemir had insisted that the fight with the blades on the longer setting, making things a wee bit awkward.

Koda leapt up into the air and slammed his lightsaber against Hemir's; sparks sprayed from the silvery blades. Koda then used his blade to push off of Hemir's, sending him higher into the air. The Chiss Jedi spun around, as his apprentice twisted in midair to face his master. The sparring went on a few more moments until Hemir suddenly shut off his lightsaber, as to not cut Koda in two at the waist as he swung his weapon. Koda deactivated his lightsaber also and grabbed a towel to dry off the sweat.

A few meters over Allana and Enzetti were sparring with lightwhips; they seemed to be at a standstill. While Allana was more skilled and more powerful in the Force, except when it came to creating barriers of Force energy, her apprentice was considerably more skilled with the quasi-archaic lightwhip. It was a peculiar sight to behold, akin to watching a pair of Euglena's trying to whip each other to death with their flagella. The two weapons delicately slammed into one another and got tangled, again. The two women untangled the lightwhips and shut them off.

NightShade met the Jedi by the boarding of the _Sarlagesus_, in a chattering frenzy. She turned her photoreceptor toward the cockpit, where the frozen image of a Mon Calamarian reporter hovered. "Go ahead," Hemir told Evelyn, the ship's droid brain.

"In a recently released INet holo Commander Zedekiah Braega, leader of the Imperial terrorist organization known as the New Empire, claimed credit for Allana Skywalker's recent prison break. She's been accused of the murder of Chief of State Herbert Brand. Commander Braega claims that she was a deep cover operative. Skywalker is also being blamed for the assassination of Imperial Moff Julius Reige. The Moff was found dead early this morning," said the reporter. "Like the Chief of State his neck had been broken, and lacked any sort of ligature marks."

"Shut the front airlock!" Koda exclaimed.

"Poppycock!" Hemir muttered.


	4. Chapter 4

_Coruscanti Phoenix_: Orbiting Adumar

"Director Haasef," Admiral Bwua'tu greeted the hologram.

"I am sure you heard the news about Moff Reige," the Devaronian said.

The Bothan nodded. "Disturbing. He was actually a descent man. For a Moff."

"The Empire is holding an emergency election to replace him. The main frontrunner is a Moff Valron Gatterweld. He is nowhere near as moderate as Moff Reige, and I strongly suspect that he is working with Braega."

"We all know that the idea of an Imperial election is a joke, so we have to assume that this man will become their leader," Asyr Bwua'tu said.

The Director of Intelligence nodded in agreement. "My analysts have tracked a large amount of supplies being shipped to Bastion. We believe the Empire has a fleet under construction there."

"This could all be a distraction, to draw ships away from Adumar."

"I suspect the same thing. Which is why I am sending more ships there."

"So you want me to lead a fleet to Bastion, then."

"Yes, but keep in mind that it will likely be a trap."

"I will plan accordingly, then. When should I launch?"

"By tomorrow."

Borleias: Base Camp

C-3PO followed Tycho to the screen and studied it a few moments. "Why, yes. It appears as though another fleet is currently under construction at the Bastion shipyards," the protocol droid commented as he looked at the information.

"That's what we concluded," Tycho said.

Nelani shook her head. Only three years ago the Bastion shipyards were devastated by a fleet of droid ships, indirectly controlled by Abeloth. And now the shipyards would be devastated by the Galactic Federation. People who were just trying to feed their families would be killed. And the economic damage would mean budget cuts. And of course it would be programs for the poor that would be cut. "With all their slicers the Empire should be able to keep us from obtaining this information," she said. "So they obviously wanted us to."

"It's a trap," Tycho agreed.

"The GF should be able to figure that out," Allana commented.

Hemir frowned. "But if it's some sort of bluff and the GF lets a whole fleet…"

"So they have to go in," Tycho concluded. "We need to find a way to get them some support."

"Without their knowledge," Allana added.

Nelani nodded. "We have some friends that owe us some favors. They could form a fleet with some of our Jedi."

Adumar

Just outside the gravity well of Adumar floated eight Star Destroyers. Admiral Bwua'tu sat with her chief tactical officer, going over contingency strategies. Suddenly, one of the massive ships detonated. Caught in the explosion, the neighboring Star Destroyer also exploded. The six remaining vessels' shields sparked and rippled as they deflected flaming debris.

Klaxons screamed aboard the bridge of the _Coruscanti Phoenix_, Asyr Bwua'tu's new command.

"We just lost the _Pride of Coruscant_ and _Swift Justice_," reported Zuul Zuzu, her comm officer.

The small Sulustan had offered to fake the records so that it appeared as though the Admiral had transferred to the _Pride of Coruscant_ for fear of an attempt on her life, knowing the Empire had some very skilled slicers. Admiral Bwua'tu was grateful she'd agreed to it, but felt like bantha fodder because thousands of good people had just been murdered because of _her_. "Are the remaining destroyers functional?"

Officer Zuzu typed a few keys. "Yes."

"We need two more ships, then."

"Yes, ma'am."

_Stronghold_

The Corellian Corvette the _Stronghold_ would now be the base of operations for the Jedi. "Perhaps next time we could have a whole Star Destroyer," Hemir had said, eliciting a scowl from his father-in-law. The vessel held a number of X-wings. Armedius unenthusiastically walked over to one of them. His beloved X-cepter was too easily recognizable. As was his dark green and orange astromech. He could see Hemir through the _Sarlagesus's _cockpit strapping himself in. Tycho kissed Nelani and boarded the _Firefacet_.

Bastion shipyards

A couple minutes ago six Galactic Federation Star Destroyers had dropped out of realspace and begun destroying the Empire's destroyers. As she watched another Imperial vessel detonate, through a verdant haze of light, Asyr Bwua'tu was reminded of when she'd had to destroy the GF Star Destroyers at the Bilbringi shipyards. Admiral Bwua'tu had to remind herself that all the suffering that all this destruction would cause was really Braega's fault. He was forcing her to take drastic measures to protect her own people.

"I do not like this," said Zuul Zuzu. That was code for 'I feel something ominous in the Force'.

"Full alert," Admiral Bwua'tu said.

Suddenly, a dozen or so of the incomplete Star Destroyers began to fill space with green and blue fire. Some of these began moving into positions around the fleet. As expected the enemy had drawn her fleet in. And also as had been expected completed enemy Star Destroyers started dropping out of hyperspace behind Bwua'tu's fleet, and unleashing swarms of TIE Defenders. The enemy fighters were met by squadrons of X-wings.

"Now," Admiral Bwua'tu said into the comm. Near the edge of the system, just out of sensor range, two Star Destroyers and dozens of fighter squadrons made a short hyperspace jump and less than a minute later appeared behind the completed Imperial vessels. With their leftward weapons trenches facing the rear of the enemy flotilla, the two GF Star Destroyers fired away, immediately disabling the engines of two enemy destroyers. X-wings began swarming about the two enemy Star Destroyers like angry piranha beetles. The fighters zipped away from one of the destroyers seconds before it exploded.

A swarm of TIE Defenders led a TIE Avenger, headed toward the two GF Star Destroyers was met a larger swarm of X-wings. The Imperial pilots fought as though they shared one mind. They seemed to anticipate the actions of the Federation pilots. The Imperial forces would concentrate their fire on just a few X-wings at a time. Many of the TIE Defenders managed to take out multiple X-wings before being destroyed. And still some of those TIEs managed to ram some of the X-wings. The Avenger and a group of Defenders managed to break away from the current engagement and went for one of the Federation Star Destroyers. Most of the X-wing that tried to pick up pursuit were vaped, but those that weren't were met by the Avenger and a pair of TIE Defenders.

Twenty three TIE Defenders were currently headed toward one of the GF Star Destroyers. All but five of them managed to scatter, twist, and corkscrew away from turbolaser fire. Nine of the remaining TIEs broke off to deal with an X-wing squadron while the remaining nine focused their efforts on the destroyer. The other Star Destroyer tried in vain to target the TIEs, only managing to damage its partner. Two of the TIEs flew straight into the deflector, causing an uncharacteristically large detonation.

The besieged Federation Star Destroyer lurched forward for the crew, obviously recognizing that they were all going to die anyway, had apparently decided to at least attempt to ram an enemy Star Destroyer. But a number of the Empire's Star Destroyers had managed to turn, bringing flank weapons to bear, and the GF vessel was rendered dead in space before reaching its target.

"We just lost the _Krayt Dragon_," announced Zuul Zuzu. Moments later the bridge of the _Coruscanti Phoenix_ shuddered as something exploded against the deflector shield. "Four TIE Defenders just crashed into our shield. They were packed with explosives," said another officer. The ship shook again as it sustained more fire, right where the TIEs had crashed. Four more TIE Defenders approached the _Phoenix_. Six X-wings came out to them. Within a minute two of the X-wing exploded; the rest soon followed. And the TIEs continued on toward the _Phoenix_.

Some of the enemy Star Destroyers began targeting individual X-wings, as though the TIE Defenders weren't making enough of a killing. Asyr Bwua'tu was very unsettled by the coordination of the enemy Forces. The Chiss fleet commander Thorden had done that with his Forces in the battle with Abeloth three years prior. Had the Empire found themselves a Sith? She knew a true Jedi would never work with the Empire this way. And of course she couldn't tell anyone, aside from Zuul Zuzu. Anyone else would think Allana and perhaps the other Jedi were doing this. She could even imagine Jed Haasef signing off on a new Order 66.

A number of X-wings, assorted freighters, and a light blue and light green Corellian Corvette suddenly dropped out of hyperspace. Admiral Bwua'tu looked over at Zuul Zuzu. She gave the admiral a thumbs up. "Those other vessels are allies," Asyr said into the comm. If asked she would simply say that she didn't want Imperial spies to know about the small reserve fleet. And her crew knew she didn't always explain herself. The Corellian Corvette took up position beside the _Coruscanti Phoenix_.

Two of the TIE Defenders heading for the _Phoenix_ detonated as an X-wing and a black vessel, roughly resembling a winged sarlacc with its wings touching, came up behind the enemy fighters. The two other TIEs were finished off before any of them could manage to hit their target. The shield managed to recover and the ships, no doubt piloted by Jedi, remained with the _Phoenix_ to continue to defend it.

As Admiral Bwua'tu repositioned some of her destroyers and fighter squadrons she began to notice that the coordination of the Imperial forces had subsided some. Perhaps one of the Jedi, Tycho most likely, was counteracting-jamming-that coordination. The X-wings began to destroy larger numbers of TIEs, and along with some of the newly arrived freighters the Corellian Corvette was leading an attack on the incomplete, but armed destroyers. But with the loss of three-no four Federation Star Destroyers, things were still going horribly. Her attempt to turn the enemy's own trap against them had been anticipated, and used to create an even more devastating trap.

With the help of the supplemental fleet, no doubt put together by the Jedi, the remainder of Asyr's fleet managed to break away from the Imperial trap, and Bastion's gravity well, and escape to hyperspace. The fleet would regroup at Adumar, and fight against the Empire when it came to take the planet. If they weren't in the process of doing it already. Bringing all those extra fighter squadrons along to Bastion had meant that the GF Star Destroyers at Adumar would be down significantly. It had been a risk she was willing to take since it was much more difficult to detect fighters entering hyperspace than capital ships. But if the Empire had anticipated that… _I'd have been notified if Adumar were under attack._


	5. Chapter 5

_Stronghold_

"They've already sent someone to kill the admiral," Nelani said in response to Koda's question. "Asyr was supposed to be on the _Pride of Coruscant_, but Zuul Zuzu convinced her to transfer to the _Coruscanti Phoenix_. The _Pride of Coruscant_ blew up and took another ship with it before the fleet left for Bastion."

"Sabotage."

Tycho nodded. "I wouldn't be surprised if they already have someone on the _Phoenix_."

"So we need to do the same," Nelani said.

"My face isn't very well known," Koda said. "I'm sure Krayt could get me into the admiral's security detail."

Nelani looked at the Bothan Jedi.

"No problem," the young man replied, sounding a little more excited than he should have. Krayt took a seat at one of the terminals. NightShade rolled up beside him and connected herself to one of the data ports.

Koda looked at the uniform on his bed. The name Farlopp was sewn onto the left side of the chest. He looked at Hemir. "As in Dr. Jolus Farlopp from MedStar."

"Not quite. That would be a wee bit too suspicious." Hemir handed his apprentice a datapad.

Koda studied the 'pad; his alias was Adok Farlopp. "Cute."

Hemir shook his head. "Please, do not say that word when you're looking at me."

Koda took the uniform into the 'fresher. He emerged a few moments later, barely recognizable. His hair was short, and lenses made his hazel eyes appear dark brown.

_Coruscanti Phoenix_

"Adok Farlopp," Koda said, shaking Admiral Bwua'tu's hand. He sensed recognition from her in the Force, and winked to reassure her that he had her back. One of the two human guards snickered, apparently having gotten the wrong impression.

"Nigel Ludwig," the man said. His skin was very pale; had he never been out in the sun in his whole life? And his hair had been recently buzz cut.

"Ziggy Carmichael," said the other. He had dark skin and long dreadlocks, with golden beads woven in.

The four of them walked down a series of corridors. The admiral stopped at one of the doors. "These will be your quarters for the time being," she told Koda. "Right next to mine," she said, gesturing to an adjacent door.

Koda walked into the first room and looked around carefully as he reached out into the Force for anything out of place. He cautiously opened the locker by his bed. "Aw. No pranks for the new guy?" Koda asked in mock disappointment.

Ziggy shook his head. "Sorry Ad Hoc. I'm sure I'll come up with something."

Koda frowned at the nickname. "Don't worry about it, Wiggy," he said upon exiting the room.

"You're funny, man."

The admiral sniffed in amusement.

* * *

"Hey, Ad Hoc," Ziggy said as he strode into their quarters after supper that day. Propped up against the side of Koda's bed was some sort of partial leg prosthesis. "What'd you do to your leg, man?"

"You think I'd do that to my own leg, _man_?" Koda shook his head. "Got into an altercation with some Mandos, man. I was by this wall with this rusty metal support structure and the dude fired at it. And a bunch of shrapnel tore up my leg somethin' fierce. Lost most of my calf muscle."

He grimaced. "Ouch. Where'd that happen?"

"Coruscant. After that whole crazy droid thing."

Ziggy whistled. "Ain't been there since. What's it like there?"

"You seen Slum Bum Trillionaire?"

Ziggy nodded.

"Multiply that by seventy three, and there you go."

Ziggy looked over at Nigel. "What's he up to?"

"Don't know," Koda said. "Haven't checked his records to see how tall he is."

Ziggy shook his head.

"Beasts of Fury, I think."

"You up to some holochess?" Ziggy asked.

"Sure."

"You ever been to one of those genealogy sites?" Ziggy asked as he activated the board.

"No. I'm afraid I'll find out I'm related to Ysanne Isard or something."

The older man snickered. "Went on GenieOlogy 'bout a month ago. Turns out I'm related to Lando Calrissian."

Koda nodded. "I see the resemblance. As far as that mustache is concerned."

Ziggy shook his finger at him. "Now, don't be dissin' the 'stache, man."

It was quiet as Admiral Bwua'tu and her three guards, sticking about as close as gnats, made their way to the Ops room, where Intelligence Director Haasef would most likely be briefing the admiral on the most recent Imperial activity. The corridors through which they passed were mostly deserted. This was when the assassin-hopefully there was only one-would most likely strike. So Koda Force brushed the minds of the people they passed. Nothing suspicious. Of course one could, without too much difficulty, learn how to mask such things. Whoever it was would seem completely inconspicuous… So, then who was the most…

"Down!" Koda shouted, less than a second before the shriek of a discharging weapon, as he spun around. He wrestled one of the guards to the ground, and the man's laser pistol clattered to the floor. Koda fired his ion blaster into the man's stomach and he was out. Koda scrambled over toward Admiral Bwua'tu. She was lying on the ground. The other security guard, Ziggy had his hand pressed against her abdomen. But she was bleeding too badly. Koda reached out in the Force and put pressure on the wound. The man looked up at Koda in a surprise. The Jedi put a finger to his lips. If the Galactic Federation found out there was a Jedi in their midst…

Ziggy nodded quickly and Koda commed for a medic. Moments later the injured admiral was on a hover gurney being wheeled to the nearest sickbay. Ziggy and Koda stayed in the operating room encase someone else decided to finish the job. Surgeons, both living and mechanical operated on Asyr. A small, modified tractor beam projector was putting pressure on her wound, which meant that Koda didn't have to reveal to anyone else that he was a Jedi.

"She's stable," one of the surgeons said after… Koda wasn't quite sure how long. "I don't know how you guys managed to keep her from bleeding to death."

"Sheer determination, man," said Ziggy.

"We'll stay by her bedside, in case anyone else wants to kill her," Koda said.

The surgeon nodded his agreement.

The unconscious admiral was soon in a hospital bed. Koda probed the IV solution as one of the orderlies shaved Asyr's hand. Just the typical solution used to keep one hydrated.

"Your name isn't really Adok, is it?" Ziggy asked after the orderlies had left.

He shook his head. "Koda Palaui."

"And when you winked at her the other day, you weren't flirting with her?"

Koda shook his head. "She's cute and all, but no. I was just confirming to her that I was who she thought. Smelled, really." It was well known that Bothans possessed a far better sense of smell than humans.

A couple or so hours later a young ensign came into the room. "Ludwig's dead," he said somewhat nervously. "One of his molars was missing, and there was a small hollow space underneath. The coroner thinks there was a kill tab in there."

Bastion

There was death metal playing in the background. _Supremacy_, it sounded like. The man had a tattoo of a smiling human skull on the side of his neck. "_General_ Braega," he said. "It is an honor to meet you."

"Likewise, Mr. Ludwing." Braega listened to the music a bit.

"_The Final Solution_," Ludwig said, naming the particular song. "They're quite a bit like _Eye of Palpatine_. And you may call me Mycroft."

"Well, on that note you may call me Zedekiah."

The two human supremacists seated themselves at a circular table. Ludwig gestured to a bottled of Corellian Brandy. "248 Vintage."

"A very good year, indeed."

"Any word on the mutt?"

"Not yet," Zedekiah said. "But things like this can take time," he said reassuringly.

A waitress put two sets of silverware on the table. Zedekiah picked up the knife and examined the handle. It was some sort of exquisitely carved ivory. "Weequay ivory," Ludwig said. A couple moments later the waitress brought over two plates, each with a piece of reddish-brown meat. "The GF would want our heads for that, and what we're about to eat."

"Weequay?"

"Close. I'll give you a hint. It rhymes with cookie."

Braega laughed. "You are an absolute nutter, mate. You'd make a fine Imperial officer."

"I was mighty close. But the Bastion Imperial Academy kicked me out, because apparently my views were too… extreme." He shook his head in disgust. "And I thought they had a no discrimination policy."

Braega nodded. "I went over your records. You were one of their best cadets." He reached into a pocket and pulled out a pin. A golden sixty-six with a blood-red outline.

Ludwig picked it up. "The only thing I hate more than aliens are Jedi. Don't know what I hate more: human Jedi or alien Jedi."

Braega pulled out another pin. "How does _Commander_ Ludwig sound?"

_Coruscanti Phoenix_

Koda and Ziggy stayed with the admiral throughout the night, taking shifts. Early the next morning a Gotal orderly gave Asyr a new IV bag. Koda brushed the bag in the Force. The fluid inside was different; it felt like some sort of venom. Cone snail, perhaps. He reached out to the Gotal woman as he used the Force to stop the liquid from dripping down into the tube. The Jedi felt no hostility from the woman; it was quite possible, even likely, that she didn't know it was poison. The orderly walked off a few moments later. And then the tube disconnected from the bag.

Ziggy looked at Koda. "Poison?"

Koda nodded. "Looks like they sent somebody to finish the job."

"We should get her out of here."

"I could probably use the Force to make people not notice."

"I got a better idea."

A dark skinned human male walked with a white furred Bothan woman toward the nearest hangar bay. The Bothan leaned on him, and had a slightly stumbling gate. A young man with buzz cut hair walked a few meters behind the two, shaking his head as though in disapproval. The two reached the hangar and entered a _Lambda_ class shuttle. Moments later the young man joined them.

"Never thought I'd be an accomplice to a kidnapping," Ziggy commented as he started up the shuttle. "Especially of a Galactic Federation admiral."

"Friends of the Jedi get to have all sorts of fun," Koda said as he finished strapping in the unconscious admiral. He walked to the copilot's seat and sat down behind the terminal. He took out his comlink and connected it to a port in the terminal via a small wire. Koda pressed a button and lines of code appeared on the screen. "We are now authorized for departure."

The shuttle passed through the magcon field and out into the starry velvet of space. A few minutes later it vanished in a flash of light.

Koda left the cockpit. He pulled a damp cloth out of a satchel and started rubbing the white paint off Asyr's face and forearms.

The ceiling looked different when Asyr Bwua'tu woke up. She frowned. The bed felt different and her abdomen was very sore on the left. Where she'd been shot. Where the heck was… Sitting on the edge of the bed was Ziggy. He was doing something on a datapad. She tried to speak to get his attention, and managed to cough.

Ziggy turned toward the sound. "Admiral, you're awake."

"This ain't the _Coruscanti Pheonix_."

"No Admiral. Someone tried to poison your IV, so we decided it wasn't safe for you there. You're onboard the _Stronghold_."

"Thank you. And you can call me Asyr."


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

_Darklighter_: Orbiting Adumar

A flash of light resolved itself into a light blue and light green Corellian Corvette. "The _Stronghold_, sir."

Captain Dmitri Androkov was relieved to see Admiral Bwua'tu's face moments later. "Admiral, I was deeply worried about. Are you alright?"

"Yes, thank you. There were multiple attempts on my life onboard the _Phoenix_. So a couple of my guards got me out of there."

The Chev captain nodded. "I offer you my ship, then."

"Thank you, Captain Androkov."

Dmitri Andokov watched the Corvette ascend through the magcon field. Enormous doors closed beneath the smaller ship and it descended some as it settled down upon its landing struts. Officers waited at the foot of the ramp as Asyr Bwua'tu descended with Adok and Ziggy. "Welcome aboard the _Darklighter_, Admiral."

"Thank you. Any news?"

"Yes," the captain replied. "Intel has informed us that an Imperial fleet is on its way, and should arrive within three and a half hours."

"Who's in charge of the fleet's battle plan?"

"That would be me, Admiral. Aside from you I'm the highest ranking person here." The Galactic Federation had been stretched dangerously thin of late. Apparently, so thin that they hadn't been able to spare a general.

The admiral's two guards accompanied her, Captain Androkov, and his chief tactical officer to the _Darklighter's_ Ops Room. The captain explained in detail the plan, with the Admiral Bwua'tu making improvements along the way. The admiral made seemingly insignificant adjustments, which she promptly explained. Koda, who'd been learning about military strategy from Hemir and Tycho, which often involved chess, was quite impressed. In a chess game, he reckoned that Asyr Bwua'tu could probably think at least ten moves ahead, which meant anticipating the enemy's moves.

"And if it's not too much trouble," the admiral said," I would like to transfer Zuul Zuzu to your ship. She's sort of an apprentice of mine."

"That will be no trouble at all."

Koda sat down at one of the terminals and plugged in a datacard. Code began scrolling across the screen. The program would 'bounce' signals from the _Darklighter_ off multiple Star Destroyers, as though they were IP addresses, so that the Empire fleet could not determine what ship Admiral Bwua'tu was on.

Galactic Federation Star Destroyers had oriented themselves so that their flank weapons would be facing the incoming Imperial fleet's entry vector. Fighters waited above and below the formation. And, hanging back behind the ships were the Adumarian orbital defense platforms. The same design as the Golan defense stations. For Asyr Bwua'tu the waiting was almost more stressful than the fighting. One could only go over battle plans so many times before one started to second guess oneself. And that could be far more dangerous than having a few ships not be in the perfect positions. So all that was left to do now was…

Flashes of light resolved themselves into the silver slivers of Star Destroyers. The Imperial fleet had arrived. And as expected their flank weapons were already pointed at the Galactic Federation fleet. Space was plunged into a psychedelic haze as both fleets began exchanging fire. The orbital defense platforms soon joined in, firing between some of the Federation Star Destroyers.

And then much smaller flashes of light began to appear and resolve themselves into fighters. TIE Defenders and Avengers. TIE Avengers were similar in design to the TIE Advanced, except the wings pivoted outward instead of inward. The TIEs met X-wings and A-wings. Some TIEs made it past the Federation fighters and headed toward the defense platforms. Short range Adumarian fighters poured out of the defense platforms to meet them. And again the TIE pilots seemed to be guided by someone powerful in the Force.

"Another ship just…" Zuul Zuzu pointed at the screen. The largest flash of light yet resolved itself into an enormous black triangular vessel. The bow was like a large fang that tapered, and terminated toward the stern. Asyr Bwua'tu felt sick and could hear her heart hammering inside her chest. An _Eclipse_-class Star Destroyer. The battle plan had not even taken this possibility into account. The _Darklighter_ shook as it began taking heavy fire from the monstrosity. The _Zdraekus_, nearby, began taking a similar beating.

"Bugger!" Hemir muttered upon feeling the enormous ship enter realspace. The Empire had a new toy. He felt a familiar ship approach before Evelyn, the droid brain of the _Sarlagesus_ could alert him to it. The _Eviscerator_. Inside was another familiar presence, though it was much darker. He was both relieved and disturbed. So, one of his wife's clones had survived. A clone had murdered the Chief of State, and now there was concrete evidence of it. Unless she got blown up. But he might not have much choice.

The two freighters, uncharacteristically nimble for their size, charged at each other as in a game of gundark. The ships traded fire, and at the last moment both vessels veered off in different directions. They looped around to come at each other again.

Evelyn buzzed at Hemir. He glanced at the screen; a quartet of TIE Avengers was headed his way. Had he not also been engaged with another powerful Force user in another highly upgraded freighter, it wouldn't have been a problem.

The barrages let up a tiny bit as the _Eclipse_ turned slightly, orienting its bow toward the _Phoenix_. The smaller vessel's deflector shield turned a pale blue and flickered violently as it crumpled. The Star Destroyer itself detonated as it, too, was crushed. Admiral Bwua'tu had expected a superlaser, not that a repulsor weapon was any better. It was potentially worse.

If Hemir wasn't in trouble yet, he would be soon. Allana destroyed another TIE Defender and carefully proceeded to make her way to her husband. She barely managed to dodge an enemy fighter, intent on ramming her. That TIE Defender detonated and Krayt, still flying a standard X-wing, went zooming by in chase of another bogey.

Allana felt the sudden extinguishing of thousands of lives as the _Coruscanti Phoenix_ was breached in thousands of places, and people instantly froze, and/or suffocated. She couldn't do much about that now, and brought attention to more immediate dangers.

Allana's X-wing shook as it took enemy fire. She felt a powerful evil, and somewhat deranged presence. Dezden Rehemma, probably. He'd been the one behind the creation of Midichlore, which had enabled people to become Force users. Those people, unfortunately, had died because their bodies hadn't been able to handle all that extra energy. Dezden had obviously managed to improve the formula. She'd never met the man, since the Sith Lady Zenya had nearly killed her with Force lightning, and necessitated her evacuation from Coruscant, the previous year. She looped around and started firing at the TIE Avenger he was flying.

Hemir could smell something burning and then more sparks erupted behind him. A group of buzz droids dutifully skittered over to the damaged area to effect repairs. Hemir and Evelyn could not let up their firing on the _Eviscerator_, and thus couldn't do much about the pesky Avengers. The TIEs continued to fire on the _Sarlagesus_, eliciting more showers of sparks. The Chiss Jedi grimaced as one of the sparks burned through the right arm of his shirt.

Hemir felt Krayt and Enzetti approaching before, seconds later, two of the TIE Avengers pestering him exploded in tandem sprays of fire. They soon took out the other two. Frustration radiated from Allana's clone as the _Evisverator_ was forced to retreat. Or did she want the three Jedi to chase her into a trap? Nelani, piloting the _Firefacet_ and leading her own squadron, reached out to Hemir. She obviously was also concerned about it being a trap. It would be best if she took over for now.

The _Eclipse_ was headed straight for one of the Galactic Federation Star Destroyers. The smaller vessel began to turn in order to present its left flank. The _Eclipse_ turned slightly to its left, and smashed into its prey before it could get out of the way. The deflector shields of both vessels rippled hatefully. Flames began erupting along the hull of the smaller destroyer as it was crushed. The flaming debris seemed to flow along the _Eclipse's_ right flank. The ship's deflector shield stopped rippling seconds later.

Asyr Bwua'tu tried to stay detached as she watched this. It suggested that the repulsor weapon needed time to charge. Though, she suspected that ramming used up less energy. And perhaps Braega-he was no doubt commanding the most powerful vessel in his fleet-only wanted it to appear as though the weapon needed time to charge. The admiral would thus proceed as though that were the case.

The _Eclipse_ kept up its fire, allowing a couple Imperial Destroyers to start moving toward the defense platforms. Swarms of TIEs used the larger vessels as cover. The destroyers began taking out individual fighters trying to protect the platforms. Like angry piranha beetles the TIEs swarmed toward the poorly defended battle stations. A couple of the Imperial fighters would detonate against the deflector shield, allowing other TIEs to sneak under. They then easily took out the shield generators and moved away to let the Star Destroyers finish the job.

The _Zdraekus_ lurched forward as the Eclipse oriented its bow in that direction. The_ Eclipse's_ crew was only happy enough to crush the now exposed defense platform. The Galactic Federation hadn't prepared for this. Asyr knew Adumar could not be saved. Her forces would have to retreat and regroup back at Borleias which was exactly what the enemy wanted.

Hapes Consortium

"Sir, with all due respect we're about to end this civil war," Admiral Sebastian Darklighter said. "If you call my fleet away now this could go on for another year." His fleet had established a blockade, preventing the Hapan Freedom Federation from receiving vital supplies. If his fleet pulled away much of the progress he'd made would be all for naught.

The Hapan civil war was in its seventh year. Government corruption and exorbitant taxes had inspired the Hapan Freedom Movement. Things had continued to deteriorate with subsequent assassination of the Hapan Queen Mother, who happened to have been a powerful Jedi Master. Sebastian didn't believe for a moment that the Hapan Freedom Federation was responsible. The rebels lacked the resources and personnel necessary. And such a brazen act would only hurt their cause.

It would most likely have taken one or more other Force users to kill the Queen Mother. The Sith. A major enemy of theirs was now dead. And the resulting civil war provided a distraction they would most certainly take advantage of.

Sebastian Darklighter wasn't entirely convinced that he was on the right side of this. The situation was similar to the rebellion against the Empire. But the Galactic Federation had elected to join the Consortium. By joining the more powerful side it would be possible to end the conflict sooner. Well, not anymore.

"I understand that," Intelligence Director Jed Haasef said. "But we cannot allow this madman to reestablish the Empire. You know what that would mean."

Sebastian shook his head. "I will comply, under protest."

"Duly noted," the director said sourly. The transmission ended.

"Idiot!" Some of his officers were no doubt staring at him, but he didn't care.

256 ABY

Sebastian closed the door behind him. "Setta." He frowned she always met him at the door when he came home. Perhaps she'd gotten busy doing something. She'd be along when she was done. He put his suitcase on the floor and went to pour himself a glass of purple wine. There was soft sobbing coming from their bedroom.

He slowly opened the door. His wife Rosetta sat on their bed. She was looking at pictures of their son Jula. Sebastian rushed over to her; he couldn't ask the question.

Rosetta looked at her husband angrily. "Our son is dead. Jula is dead. One month. He needed you and you weren't there!"

"No one told-"

"He's dead!"

Sebastian went to hold her, but she pushed him away. Rosetta made him sleep on the couch that night. And the remaining four days of his leave.

257 ABY

"You're never home," Rosetta complained.

"You knew I'd be gone most of the time when you married me."

"I don't think I can do this anymore." Sebastian could only stand there, speechless, as his wife took the rings off her finger. "Go pawn them somewhere."

He spent the rest of his two week leave in some cheap hotel. And in that time he signed the divorce document and pawned the rings.


	7. Chapter 7

259 ABY

_Stronghold_: Orbiting Borleias

"Even with Admiral Darklighter's fleet, taking out the _Eclipse_ is gonna be real hard," Tycho said.

Hemir nodded. "And if that bloody thing can just ram into other ships…"

"Ramming the _Eclipse_ might not accomplish much," Allana agreed.

"Unless it was rammed enough times," Koda said. "But how many Star Destroyers would have to be sacrificed?"

"It would still be a victory for the Empire," Nelani said.

"We'll have to take it from the inside, then," Tycho said, sighing. He looked at Armedius. "Think you can slice into the Imperial database?"

"I thought you'd never ask. It will take, perhaps… three hours and twenty three minutes."

"He's almost as bad as Threepio," Allana said quietly.

"I heard that," the Bothan Jedi said as he took a seat at the nearest terminal and got to work.

It was soon decided that Hemir and Allana would go. Once there they were to sabotage some of the turbolaser batteries near one of the hangars, using whatever materials they could find, enabling the Jedi to get a few ships inside. With their powerful Force bond they were better able to coordinate with each other. And, in a Force meld with her husband, Allana would be able to sense the flow of electricity through the _Eclipse_ almost as well as he could. Nelani looked at her daughter and son-in-law. "You can't go in there looking like that."

Hemir frowned. "I'll have to wear makeup won't I?

Nelani nodded. "And these," she said as she handed them each a dark greenish uniform. And a pin. A golden sixty-six in a blood red outline.

"Ugh," Allana said.

When Hemir stepped out of the fresher he was bald, his mustache was gone, and he was wearing brown contacts. He sat down in a chair, and immediately a makeup artist began applying prostheses to his face. Another person was putting dark synthskin over his prosthetic arm. And, over the course of a couple hours he went from a blue skinned Chiss to a brown skinned human.

Hemir looked over at Allana, who sat in an identical chair. Her hair was now short and brown. And like him she wore brown contacts. Her skin was now very pale, and a prosthesis had been put over her cute button of a nose. She looked so different. But, it would be needed to fool any facial recognition software that might be used on them.

"Can't wait to rip that hideous thing off your nose," Hemir told his wife.

"You're crazy if you I'll wait for you to do it," Allana retorted.

Nelani took their pictures and put them on a datacard which she put on the desk beside Krayt. He had gotten through the Imperial firewall, and had begun creating two false identities. Gregoria Agnitus and Choad Niedermeir. Nelani shook her head at the names. "If you ever have children, you have got to let your wife name them."

"Exactly why I choose such wretched names. Less work for me." He spoke in a muttering, somewhat detached way, as he always did when slicing. "Now, to falsify the time stamps of the creation of the ID's," he murmured to himself.

Derricote Supply Depot

Hemir and Allana walked down the boarding ramp of the transport they'd boarded at the Borleias spaceport and headed toward what Hemir had dubbed the Supply Despot. Once there they removed the clothes they'd been wearing over their uniforms and waited for the shuttle that would bring them to the _Eclipse_.

"I really hate these outfits," Hemir commented quietly.

"Not my color, either," said Allana.

Adumar

The Imperial fleet had already moved most of the debris of the recent battle away from the planet's gravity well. The people of Adumar would be more willing to cooperate that way. And the Empire wouldn't unnecessarily damage such an important asset as was provided in Adumar's resources and manufacturing plants.

Hemir looked through the window of the shuttle at the enormous onyx dagger of the _Eclipse_. The fact that the vessel was being used by the Empire didn't change how magnificent it was. It reminded the Chiss Jedi of the time three years ago when he'd seen the _Vanquisher_ for the first time. But this time the mission was to destroy the ship, or at least make it less difficult to do so. He listened to the conversations started by some of the recruits. They all sounded so excited. But if things went as planned all these people would die. In war there were usually good, decent people on both sides. And horrible people. Indeed, the Empire could one day be defeated for good, only to have the Galactic Federation to take its place.

Borleias

Over the course of a few hours several Golan Defense platforms and a single Mon Calamarian cruiser the _Shield of Dac_ had dropped out of hyperspace to reinforce the defense of the capital world of the Galactic Federation. Admiral Bwua'tu stood beside Captain Androkov, staring through the _Darklighter's_ forward viewport. Asyr looked at the chrono; they'd only been waiting thirteen minutes, but it had felt like over an hour. It was when all the planning that could be done had been done that her mind would begin to race. Had other Star Destroyers been sabotaged like the _Pride of Coruscant_? Other thoughts went through the Bothan woman's mind as she waited for battle.

"Multiple contacts," called out someone as Asyr was returning from the 'fresher. A short sprint brought her back to the bridge before she had time to reflect on how glad she was for all that track training.

A couple hundred kilometers away hung the monstrous obsidian dagger of the _Eclipse_. Arrayed above and below the behemoth was the rest of the fleet, the rest of the fleet that was here at the moment. The _Eclipse_ began turning its right flank toward the Federation fleet.

Smaller, scattered flashes of light resolved themselves into TIE Defenders and Avengers. X-wings, A-wings, and B-wings came out to meet them. About half of the TIEs remained to deal with the Federation fighters while the others headed toward Borleias. With frightening precision and efficiency most of the fighters managed to avoid fire from Federation Star Destroyers and the defense platforms. Around half of those TIEs headed toward Borleias broke off to deal with the defense platforms.

* * *

While not as maneuverable as A-wings or X-wings B-wings packed one heck of a wallop, reflected Aya Morimoto as her squadron managed to vape a few more TIEs. Along with a squadron of A-wings, they were defending one of the Golan Defense platforms. If one TIE managed to detonate against the station's deflector shield it might allow others to slip under, dooming the defense platform.

Aya Morimoto had this strange feeling that something was horribly wrong. Some shadow of darkness over this battle. She'd been having these strange feelings lately. _It's just stress._ The Mon Calamarian pilot frowned as she instinctively fired off a torpedo, at nothing. _You stupid barnacle! _And then a TIE Avenger plowed right into it. How in the Void had she… Her father had often told her that when the winds were favorable one just accepted it and put up their sails.

Without really thinking about it Aya fired off a few shots at a Defender, shearing one of its three wings right off. Her wingmate fired his ion cannon at the damaged area, causing the TIE to spiral out of control. She swiveled her left eye around just in time to see an A-wing ram a TIE before it could explode against the Golan Defense platform's deflector shield. Aya hadn't known the pilot.

Aya suddenly felt a peculiar sense of relief, and less than a second later several of the TIEs detonated. A few X-wings fanned out to vape more TIEs. She could tell that the pilots were Jedi. How they made seemingly reckless maneuvers yet didn't crash into anything. Aya shook her head; it couldn't be. Her B-wing shook as something beside her detonated. She knew before she looked at the sensors, but looked anyway. Her wingmate was gone.

_Minotaur_

This day was bittersweet for Mycroft Ludwig. He had just received word that his brother Nigel had used his killtab, so that the interrogators couldn't get anything from him, after his failed attempt to assassinate that mutt Bwua'tu. He would make the GF pay!

But he had just been given command of the _Minotaur_, Zedekiah Braega's own vessel. Such an incredible honor. Commander Mycroft Ludwig was also in charge of three other Star Destroyers. Not a whole fleet, of course, but that was fine. One of the enemy Star Destroyers lit up bright green. The _Darklighter_, according to the name beneath it. Commander Ludwig ordered his ships to target that vessel. Mycroft didn't know how it had been determined that the mutt was on that ship. That dog would surely have had the records faked, so slicing wouldn't have worked. But the fact that it had been managed was, at the moment, far more important than how.

Another GF Star Destroyer the _Zdraekus_, named after a bug apparently, moved in to support the _Darklighter_. Ludwig ordered the _Death Cap_ to engage it. The _Minotaur_ and his two other destroyers, _Daala_ and _Vengeance of Bastion_ continued to pound the _Darklighter_.

_Darklighter_

"Dang!" Admiral Bwua'tu muttered under her breath as the lights on the bridge dimmed.

"How'd they know?" Captain Androkov seconded as he examined the damage readout. "More power to port shields," he ordered one of his officers.

"Weapons, starboard, engines?"

"Starboard. So put more fighters there."

"Yes sir."

Admiral Bwua'tu keyed on the comm. It wasn't the ideal moment, but they could no longer wait. "Send 'em in." She turned to Captain Androkov, who'd just finished giving an order.

"Just sent the _Shield of Dac_ after the _Death Cap_."

"Just what I'd have done," Asyr said in approval. The _Shield of Dac_ was slightly larger and more powerful than the standard Star Destroyer.

_Eclipse _

"General, another fleet just dropped out of hyperspace."

"I was expecting that," Braega said. "Fire when they're within range."

"Very good, sir."

Galactic Federation vessels closed in on both sides. Zedekiah could not keep the grin from his face. "Open the Ninth Gate!" Space lit up like a supernova as the monster's fire became even more ferocious.

_Sword of Borleias_

The bridge of the _Sword of Borleias_ shuddered and dimmed. And an alarm began to wail. "Shields down to sixty nine," an officer shouted over the klaxons, which soon went silent. "We just lost the _Double Sunset_," someone else said.

And Admiral Darklighter only became more frustrated and disgusted with the vac-brains in the senate. At least in the Hapes sector he'd been able to accomplish something. And after this he doubted the GF would be able to send a fleet back there.

If he was going to lose most of his ships, anyway. Sebastian shook his head. Braega would be expecting that, which meant such a move would be idiotic. The _Eclipse_ would likely put on a tremendous burst of speed, causing his fleet to smash into Asyr's fleet. The Bothan admiral, who he knew was even more intelligent than he, would have come to the same conclusion.

_Eclipse _

Zedekiah Braega stifled a curse as he returned the comlink to his pocket. Lady Sidious had just informed that she sensed a pair of Jedi aboard his ship. The Imperial general knew better than to underestimate the Jedi. He shook his head. This could be bad. But arrangements had been made for such an eventuality.

* * *

A young woman with long red hair stepped around the corner. Her eyes glowed an angry amber color. Allana groaned. She nudged Hemir in the Force and he ran off in search of Dezden. Lady Sidious launched an arc of angry crimson fire at Allana, who deflected it with her lightsaber. Their weapons met in a shower of sparks.

* * *

Dezden Rehemma, now with the trademark red lightsaber of a Sith, jumped out at Hemir. The Chiss Jedi easily blocked the incoming crimson blade with a golden shaft of light.

"You don't have to this Dez-"

"He is no more," snarled the Omwatti Sith. "I am Darth Daedalous!"

Hemir deflected an arc of black Force lightning. He would have to be careful with his left arm. From his experience with the Sith Lady Zenya he knew quite well that Force lightning short circuited prosthetic limbs. The Chiss Jedi quickly switched his saberstaff to his left arm and activated its second blade. The blade would attract the lightning, keeping it away from the arm. He could use his right hand to block lightning if necessary.

Darth Daedalous moved his single blade at incredible speeds.

* * *

Allana created a tensor field around herself as less than a second before her clone her kicked her in the sternum and sent her slamming into the bulkhead. Red Force lightning slammed into Allana as she slid down the wall, and she screamed. As Lady Sidious prepared to behead Allana she reached out in the Force and deactivated the red lightsaber. Her father had done that to her a few times when she was younger. She Force slammed her clone into a wall and jumped back to her feet. She was a little bit dizzy.

* * *

The sooner Hemir ended this the sooner he could start figuring out how to damage the weapons around the nearest hangar. He raised his right arm, and let the energy flow into his hand and out through his fingers in the form of azure fire. It met Daedalus' onyx fire in an angry orb of light. The two hurled Force lightning as they charged at each other. Hemir hammered down on his opponent's crimson lightsaber, fueling a forward flip. The Chiss turned in the air to face Darth Daedalus as the Sith spun around.

Hemir had used that time to fling his saberstaff into the air and reconfigure his left forearm into a plasma cannon. A silvery ball of plasma and a bolt of indigo Force lightning race toward the Sith. Darth Daedalus easily blocked both. The Sith Force threw Hemir back a few meters while raising his lightsaber to knock the incoming saberstaff off course. The golden blades suddenly vanished. The Sith's blade intercepted empty air as Hemir used the Force to slam his deactivated weapon into Darth Daedalus' head.

As the quasi-dazed Omwat Sith stumbled Hemir assaulted him with a powerful bolt of dark blue flame. It slammed into Daedalus' chest, knocking him over. Hemir put his right on the man's head and let blue energy almost explode from his hand. Darth Daedalus convulsed and died. Hemir's hand felt like it was burning. He looked down at his fallen opponent. What had he done? He could just as easily, perhaps more easily, have beheaded the man with his saberstaff. He shivered; he'd just used the Force, directly, to kill someone. To murder someone. The dark side.

It was Braega's fault. Dezden had only been fighting against Hemir because that dianoga had put him up to it. Hemir wouldn't have been forced to kill… murder the man had it not been for Braega. _Why is that bloody man, by the way?_ Hemir didn't feel him anywhere. He'd gotten away. Braega must have had a ship on standby. Without telling anyone else that they could be in such grave danger, most likely.

* * *

The clone twisted in midair. Allana rolled around behind her and throw her lightsaber into the air. It spun and sliced into the middle of Lady Sidious' back, just below the shoulders. A sobbing shriek escaped her as she tumbled to the ground. Allana rushed over to her clone. It was all too familiar. She would never forget sitting on that hospital bed with her dying clone, and then watching the girl's dead body vanish into the Force. "Please," Allana said, "let me save you."

Lady Sidious feebly swung her lightsaber toward Allana's ankle. She kicked the weapon out of the clone's hand and it skittered across the floor.

* * *

Hemir could feel the energy flowing through the feeds leading from the reactor to the turbolasers, as he ran to the nearest hangar. Once there-fortunately there was no one in there-he popped open the panel behind which he'd stored some grenades and a roll of Wampa Tape. Of course he couldn't gain access to the feeds from the hangar bay. Wearing a small pack with his supplies Hemir climbed up some sort of pipe to the gantry where he cut a hole through the ceiling with his lightaber. He did this a few times until he got to the 'level'-it was actually between two levels-with the appropriate feeds. It was a long crawlspace. And so he crawled forward using the Force to levitate his saberstaff to cut some of the feeds. He left them intact at intervals. These feeds would have to compensate for the cut ones, and would thus have more energy pulsing through them. On these he placed the grenades.

* * *

A portion of the _Eclipse_, not too terribly large for a ship of that size, suddenly exploded. R2D2 bleeped to indicate that an acceptable number of turbolasers had been disabled. "Good job," Nelani whispered. With her husband's X-wing connected to the _Stronghold's _navigational systems, she flew the Corellian Corvette toward the hangar bay of the _Eclipse_. R2D2 controlled the weapons systems. Koda and Tycho, flying the _Sarlagesus_ and _Firefacet_ respectively, and eleven X-wings provided much needed support. The TIEs which came to pester them were easily dispatched, their incredible coordination now gone. The_ Stronghold_ began disintegrating under the relentless fire of the _Eclipse's_ weapons. Nelani was counting on it. It wouldn't possible to pick up Hemir and Allana from the hangar if the Corellian Corvette crashed into, and destroyed it.

Some of the X-wings took cover under the _Stronghold_. Before what was left of the Corvette could crash into the _Eclipse's_ hangar Nelani pulled it up. There were sparks as the deflector shields of both vessels clashed.

"Disengage," Nelani told Artoo. An internal explosion tore a hole through the hull of the _Stronghold_, and an X-wing rocketed out. Preprogrammed to go downward after the X-wing's departure what remained of the Corvette slammed down into the _Eclipse_. It did only minor damage, but it would make things a little more difficult for the enemy.

Koda peeled away from the formation upon feeling the energy signature of the _Eviscerator_ nearing. He did not feel the presence of a Force user aboard the ship. Either the owner-most likely Allana's clone-was hiding her presence or, more likely, the ship was piloting itself. Which meant that Koda had a distinct advantage. But he still had to be careful. The clone would no doubt have anticipated that her ship would have to pilot itself. Perhaps it had more weapons, or something.

The YT-4900, with its cockpit above and between the mandibles, sped toward the _Sarlagesus_. Symmetry generally made things more attractive, yet for some reason Koda found the positioning of the cockpit to be quite hideous. Perhaps because he had a scale model of the _Millennium Falcon_. And his late master, Jonash Horn had been a descendant of Han Solo.

_Eclipse_

The _Firefacet_ was already on the flight deck, with the boarding ramp down, by the time Allana, exhausted from dragging her dead clone by the arm, joined Hemir at the prescribed hangar. Her husband's X-wing, controlled by NightShade, hovered nearby.

Hemir picked up his wife's dead clone and ran over to the _Firefacet_. He met Tycho at the boarding ramp and, after his father-in-law took the dead body, ran over to and jumped into the X-wing.

Tycho helped his daughter into the copilot's seat. Allana was both relieved and horribly saddened that her clone's body hadn't vanished into the Force. It was sad that she had died serving the dark side. But the dead body would hopefully exonerate Allana.

Armedius entered the hangar in an X-wing seconds later, and the three vessels oriented themselves toward the inside of the _Eclipse_ and began firing lasers and launching torpedoes. More X-wings entered, and like parasites, proceeded to destroy the _Eclipse_ from the inside out. Geysers of fire began erupting from the surface of the _Eclipse_. Behind some of these spouts of fire came X-wings.

* * *

The _Death Cap_'s shields flickered violently under the relentless pounding of the _Shield of Dac_. Fire began slipping past the shield, ripping off chunks of hull plating. Eventually the deflector shield buckled, and a few more targeted barrages rendered the _Death Cap_ dead in space. The Mon Cal cruiser then moved in to reinforce the _Darklighter_ and the _Zdraekus_ against Commander Ludwig's other three vessels. This was not a fight Mycroft Ludwig could win. And with the loss of the _Eclipse_… how beyond the Ninth Gate had that happened!

* * *

"Drat!" Koda muttered as two more proton torpedoes slammed into the _Sarlagesus_' deflector shield, which filled the cockpit with even more smoke. _Keep this up and it'll be the Slagesus. _He'd been right about the _Eviscerator_. Along with the weapons turrets above and below the body of the YT-4900 hundred freighter, a third one had been installed between the mandibles and below the cockpit. Koda could hear the scraping of buzz droids scurrying around, almost in vain, to the repair the rapidly accumulating damage.

Like two oversized fighters the two freighters charged at each other, firing all their weapons. The _Eviscerator _took some damage as a torpedo exploded against its deflector shield. The YT freighter launched another pair of torpedoes at the _Sarlagesus_. "I got this," Koda reassured Evelyn, the ship's droid brain, as he used the Force to slam one torpedo into the other. Space was lit up like a short lived fireball, like one of those elements which decayed after a few seconds.

* * *

That peculiar feeling of something being wrong was gone, the enormous Star Destroyer was being destroyed, and the Imperial forces were taking heavy losses. Aya somehow knew that that darkness had been somehow guiding the Imperial fleet.

A modified YT-4900 was assailing a strange freighter designated as an ally. Aya fired all of her weapons at the unmanned vessel. She launched a pair of proton torpedoes which slammed into the enemy ship's deflector shield. The other ship, designated as the _Sarlagesus_ launched its own pair of torpedoes. The Mon Calamari pilot suddenly turned her ship to the left, barely avoiding a flaming TIE intent on ramming her. Aya hit it with her ion cannon and the ship went dead. She launched another missile which went deep into the YT-4900 and detonated, and then that ship, too, was dead in space.

* * *

The Imperial vessels began to orient toward Adumar and began making their bids to escape the gravity well of Borleias. The Galactic Federation fleet kept up a steady stream of fire on the retreating ships. The battle was over, for now. It would no doubt resume at some point as the recent attack on Bastion by the Federation would inevitably radicalize a great many Imperial citizens. And of course there was Moff Gatterweld. And if Braega had somehow managed to survive… Asyr wouldn't be surprised. Cockroaches did seem to have that nasty habit of not dying.


	8. Chapter 8

Borleias

Though the Imperial forces had been repelled, and their _Eclipse_ destroyed, Asyr Bwua'tu couldn't consider the battle a victory. Seventeen Federation Star Destroyers had been lost, and the Empire still held Adumar. "I am deeply sorry about your fleet, Admiral Darklighter."

"My fleet accomplished almost nothing," he agreed in disgust. "And now the situation in the blasted Hapes cluster is going to Hades in a…" He sighed and looked over at the Bothan admiral. "I'm sorry. I knew you're not my therapist."

Asyr Bwua'tu patted his hand. "But I'm your friend. So if you need to talk I'll listen."

"Admirals," Ziggy Carmichael said, sounding rather unhappy, as he walked into the pilots' lounge where the two had been talking.

"Is something wrong?" Sebastian Darklighter asked.

"Depends on who you want as Chief of State."

Iota District Courthouse

Allana and Nelani waited by the _Firefacet_ as Hemir and Koda descended the boarding ramp of the _Sarlagesus_. Hemir walked over to his wife and embraced her. "Never wanted to see this place again." She seemed disgusted about something.

"What's wrong?" Hemir asked.

"Guess who the new Chief of State is."

"Interim, I hope?"

She nodded. "Jed Haasef." _The father of the mynock who tried to get me executed._

"Shut the front airlock," Koda muttered.

Tycho walked down the boarding ramp of the _Firefacet_, carrying Lady Sidious' dead body. A group of droid gunships took position around the group and security officers poured out of the courthouse and trained their weapons on the five Jedi. One of the guards looked from Allana to her clone. "Lady Sidious," Tycho said as he laid the corpse on the ground.

* * *

A man placed a deep copper colored ring on the table. "Was this the ring the murderer was wearing?" the judge asked Lieutenant Jate Redman.

"No, your honor. It was silver."

"Do you own such a ring?" the judge asked Allana.

"No, your honor."

The proceedings went on a bit longer. All the charges were dropped, and the Jedi agreed to pay for the damage they did to the prison they broke Allana out of.

256 ABY: _Minotaur_

Commander Braega and Moff Gatterweld walked into the medbay. On one of the beds was what resembled a bacta sac. Through the clear portion was a face framed by red hair. Over her eyes was some sort of visor and there were small speakers by her ears. She received a daily stream of Imperial propaganda and other educational material. At the moment she was listening to _Eye of Palpatine_, a human supremacy death metal band. Zedekiah had grown up listening to them. He looked at the real time scan of her brain; its reward centers were quite active. _So, she likes them, too._

258 ABY

Dezden Rehemma walked down the _Eviscerator's_ lowered boarding ramp. A man in a commander's uniform and a young woman with long red hair walked toward him. The man was at least middle age, with thin gray hair. His face had a hard, ruthless quality to it. "Commander Braega of the _Minotaur_."

"Dezden Rehemma." Commander Braega seemed just a touch disappointed by the name. "Or Darth Daedalus if you prefer."

The commander nodded. "And this," he said, "is Lady Sidious."

"Milady," Daedalus said. He bent down, took her hand in his, and kissed it. "I felt your call."

259 ABY: _Minotaur_

"So, needless to say, things did not quite go as planned," Braega said.

"Such things happen," Moff Gatterweld replied. "But I believe that we can turn this defeat into a victory. I have given Commander Ludwig a sizable fleet, which has been dispatched to the Hapes Cluster. They have reestablished the blockade held by Darklighter's fleet. We will help the Consortium end this conflict, and they shall look upon us as saviors. And this is all because Darklighter's fleet was called back to defend the GF against our _Eclipse_. And I will soon be joining the representatives I have sent to Adumar to apologize for all that its people have endured. It was necessary for the Empire to defend itself against the advances of the GF."

"So we may just yet restore the Empire to its former glory," Zedekiah said with a vicious smile.

In progress: STAR WARS: FATE OF THE JEDI: AWAKENING

An ancient evil doth lurk in the shadows.


End file.
